After Paddy Lowe left for Williams, Mercedes have appointed former Ferrari and Renault technical director James Allison ahead of the 2017 Formula One season.

Mercedes dominated the 2016 Formula One season after their drivers Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton finished first and second respectively in the drivers' standings. Mercedes, who topped the constructors' table with 297 points, are going for the jugular in the 2017 Formula One season. The team has appointed James Allison as their new technical director as the first step.

James Allison has over 20 years of experience in the sport and has previously worked with Ferrari as the head of aerodynamics between 2000 and 2004 when Michael Schumacher dominated the sport. He then moved to Renault where he guided Fernando Alonso to two consecutive world championships in 2005 and 2006.

Mercedes decided to make the move for Allison as they lost Paddy Lowe last month to Williams ahead of the 2017 Formula One season. James Allison had taken a short break from the sport after the sudden death of his wife in March 2016.

"I am very excited to be getting back to work after this time away from the sport. It's a massive privilege to be given the trust of a position in a team that has done so spectacularly well in the past three seasons. I am really looking forward to playing my part in helping Mercedes go from strength to strength in the coming years" Daily Star quoted him as saying.

James Allison will be reporting directly to Mercedes boss Toto Wolff.

"I am delighted to welcome James to Mercedes and very much looking forward to working with him. Our technical team is extremely skilled at every level and at the top of its game after delivering three world championships in a row.

"It wasn't an easy task to find the right personality who can strengthen our experienced group of engineers, give our talented young team members the space to develop and also bring his own vision to this role. James is a sharp engineer; I think we have found the perfect guy and the right fit with our senior leaders," Toto Wolff said.